Treasury Taps Simpson Thacher For Toxic Asset Purchase Plan

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett advised the U.S. Treasury Department in drawing up a plan to relieve banks of “toxic” assets.

Under the “Private Partnership Investment Program,” taxpayer funds would be used to help private investors buy from banks troubled loans that may be nearing default. The idea is to unfreeze the credit markets by removing the bad assets from banks and financial firms who lend money and drive transactions.

The government would provide $100 billion in bailout funds and provide leverage protection through the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The program’s goal is to buy at least $500 billion in assets, but the Treasury has stated that up to $1 trillion ultimately may be invested in this pool of toxic assets.

Simpson was one of just two firms – among six Treasury reached out to – to respond to a request for legal advice to the bailout. (Four of the firms chose to ignore the request, citing potential client conflicts and Treasury’s strict conflicts regulations). According to The American Lawyer, Simpson has since won a second Treasury contract that runs through August and pays between $50,000 and $5 million, depending on the level of work involved.

Simpson Thacher partners working on the toxic asset plan included partners Lee Meyerson, financial institutions; Barrie Covit, private funds; David Eisenberg and Brian Steinhardt, credit, and Marcy Geller, tax. Associates were Catherine Kidd, Nentcho Nentchev, Parker Kelsey and Brian Korchin, private funds and Jennifer Marsh, tax.


Shearman, Skadden and Freshfields Advise on $2.65 Billion Auto Stock Deal

In a deal worth $2.65 billion, Aabar Investments PJSC has agreed to purchase additional shares of Daimler AG, making the Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Daimler’s largest shareholder.

The new shares will bring Aabar’s total stake in the company to 9.1 percent.

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom advised Daimler as U.S. counsel.

Skadden tapped partners Hilary Foulkes in Germany, Gerhard Gnaedig in New York and Ivan Shcalger in Washington D.C., all corporate, and Bernd Mayer, mergers and acquisitions, also in Germany.

Daimler sought German legal advice from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

Finance partners Christoph Gleske and Andreas König led the Freshfields team of partners Christian Decher, Ferdinand Fromholzer and Eberhard Seydel, corporate.

Shearman & Sterling represented Aabar.

Shearman attorneys included Germany-based partners Georg F. Thoma, Hans Diekmann and Marco Sustmann, mergers and acquisitions; Marc O. Plepelits, capital markets; Johannes Frey, tax and Winfried Carli, Abu Dhabi-based Tim Pick, and London-based Clifford Atkins, Patrick Clancy and Mei Lian, finance. Associates were Germany-based Giuseppe Sferrazza and Carlos Robles y Zepf, mergers and acquisitions; Patrick Heid, capital markets; Annette Keller, tax and Abu Dhabi-based Malcolm McKinnon and Simon Jerrum and Jo Folan both in France, finance. Joachim Grittmann, public law, was of counsel in Germany.


Cooley Godward and Latham Handle $1.4 Billion Pharmaceutical Deal

California-based Gilead Sciences Inc. has signed a definitive agreement to acquire CV Therapeutics in a cash deal worth $1.4 billion.

Gilead will pay $20 per CVT share, defeating the $1 billion hostile bid by Astellas Pharma earlier this year. At the transaction’s closing, CVT will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gilead.

Gilead called on a Cooley Godward Kronish team led by mergers and acquisitions partner Richard Climan that included partners David Lipkin, mergers and acquisitions; Robert H. Miller, tax; special counsel Francis M. Fryscak, litigation and associates Michelle Sonu Park and Brandee Shtevi, mergers and acquisitions; all in California.

Willkie Farr & Gallagher‘s New York-based partners Steven Seidman and Laura Delanoy, corporate and financial services, advised Merrill Lynch, financial advisor to Gilead Sciences.

Latham & Watkins represented CVT.

Latham attorneys on the deal were partners Alan Mendelson and Mark Roeder in California and Barry Bryer and David Schwartzbaum in New York, corporate; California-based Joseph Yaffe, benefits; Judith Hasko, intellectual property; Linda Inscoe, employment; David Raab, tax and Bruce Prager, antitrust both in New York, and Washington D.C.-based John Manthei, regulatory. Associates included California-based Kathleen Wells, Lori McMullan, Alvina Hsu, Yun Huh and Elizabeth Ersun and New York-based Eli Hunt, Parul Mehta and Julia Shullman, corporate; California-based James Metz, benefits; Jocelyn Noll, tax and Virginia Tent, antitrust, both in New York, and Benneville Haas, regulatory, in Washington. Washington-based Sydney Smith and Michael Bodosky, antitrust, and New York-based Matthew Ahrens, environmental, were of counsel.

Cravath, Swaine & Moore represented Goldman Sachs as financial advisor to CVT.

Cravath lawyers included partners James C. Woolery, Scott A. Barshay, and associate O. Keith Hallam III, all corporate in New York.


“New Deals” reports on major business transactions and the attorneys involved. Please submit items by e-mail [email protected].